Masala Bay — Restaurant in Littleton

Tldr: would give 0 stars, small portions, staring wait staff, higher price than menu states, and unsanitary practices

I’ll start by saying I usually don’t give negative reviews…. But I would give this place 0 stars if that was possible.

There were small portions, compared to those of other Indian restaurants I’ve been to. The garlic naan was actually 1/2 a whole piece of naan. And one of the servers seemed to not be on the same page about that. Servers were also kinda… monotone (?). This is all bearable I suppose.

However, I felt increasingly uncomfortable throughout the meal as there was a female server who was just standing there at the bar next the table, basically just watching us eat. She stood there for a good 15-20 minutes.

Then when the check came out, I noticed that the prices for a couple of items were higher than advertised on the menu. I started to mention this to the waitress (same one who was just standing there) and I didn’t even get the finish my sentence before she just said “oh yeah. The menu hasn’t been updated yet”. The speed and accuracy at which she replied to my unfinished question shows that she was ready and knew about it. This is a recurrent issue, and upon reading other people’s reviews afterwards, is something that has been going on for at least a year.

Finally to top it all off, she (same waitress) wiped all the crumbs from the table into the small woven basket that the naan comes it. The basket is only covered by a small layer of paper (that doesn’t even cover the whole thing) and with how thin and flimsy the basket is, it is unlikely it gets washed either. I really just regretted the whole meal when I saw that.

Overall, very bad experience. 11/10 would...

Why the hell on earth do you want the Chicken Tikka Masala to look red? What’s the point of adding artificial color in the food? You do realize that it’s not supposed to be that color? Do you tell your customers that you use artificial dye to make your food look attractive? I wasn't aware until I saw it. I am not sure what is the legal(if exists) limit of using food color and if it’s being followed. Studies have indicated that artificial dyes are linked to allergies, migraine and even cancer. Although the science is not very certain about the findings , why to use something that is controversial and does not add much value to the food other than just the color. I am very sure that the Chicken Tikka Masala would be tastier even without the artificial dye. Pls avoid using it or make your customers aware.

UPDATE: Received reply from the owner saying that they do not use dye instead they use Ratanjot and Deggi Mirch . This does not sound true to me because I had placed an order for chicken tikka masala few days back and had provided the instruction not to add the food color. I received a call back from the restaurant and they informed me that the chicken tikka masala already has color in it, and they cannot remake without it . So instead, I replaced chicken tikka masala with chicken curry. This time unfortunately I forgot to provide the instructions and ended up what is there in the picture. Nothing against the business , just want the customers to be aware and not end up having a headache or stomach upset (just like me) because of it. I had no problem with the chicken curry...

Today was my first time eating Indian Cuisine, other than when a family friend made homemade chicken tikki masala.

I had the Spicy Shimp Takki, and Onion Naan. Our table shared the Meat Samosa.

The samosas were flaky, crunchy, but soft. The meat inside was great! And I'm not a huge peas kinda gal but they went undetected!

I took one bite of my spicy shrimp takki and literally had to let the waiter know immediately that it was phenomenal. The spice level was perfect for a heat seeker! It was creamy and the flavor combo was delectable! The shrimp tasted soooo fresh and cooked perfectly!

And the rice! The RICE! It has this almost sweet yet spiced flavor within it that was subtle but unique to other rice I've ever had before.

The Naan was great! I love how the pieces of onion are within the bread. It's thin but slightly chewy and makes for a great dipping item for any leftover sauce you have!

A friend has the garlic Naan and that was even better than the onion on!

Service was great for a small and busy restaurant that was taking multiple takeout orders amongst the dine in guests.

My only "downside" was that I tried the Kamasutra drink - it tasted like a very alcoholic apple juice with a slight tang that I couldn't quite put my tongue on. Still a fine drink, but it takes a couple sips to enjoy it fully. But deff not a reason to deduct any ratings...